This invention relates generally to control of electrical lighting, and more particularly to lighting control particular to lighting devices with onboard processors providing programmable control of the devices.
Recent advances in ballast-controlled lighting devices have led to availability of programmable luminaires. Some of these devices include microprocessors for control of the devices, e.g., providing automated dimming capabilities and power management features.
On-board processing capabilities allow local control of certain operating parameters. To date, such control has been limited to traditional lighting aspects, such as activity sensors to illuminate an area only when it is occupied, timer mechanisms to disable some or all of the lights in a lighting system during periods when a facility is not occupied, automatic dusk/dawn control and the like.
Significant energy savings, light pollution reduction, and equipment life advantages might be obtained if more sophisticated approaches were used to controlling lighting systems than is currently employed.
Known disclosures, such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,530,322, have described some efforts to address some of the aforementioned issues, for instance through use of a single microprocessor controlling multiple lamps. These prior approaches do not take full advantage of local processing power now available at the luminaires themselves, and a need remains for improved control methods and systems that make more use of such on-board local processing capability.